The Clifton clarion., 1887-03-16
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 Ina origin of the custom of cascarone breaking is probably surrounded with as impenetrable mystery as the identity of the Man in the Iroa Mask" It WIS brought to California by the early Spanish families from Mexico, and up to within q few years past t was an attractive feature of every dance given during cor- tam portion of the year. Casca- cone season begins, according to custom, at I2 o'clock Christmas light and lasts until Ash Wejnes- lay, any one of our old citizens can tel! of the grand times at cas- carone balls In the flush days when the custom was at it's night. Dances were of almost nightly oc- cmrence then. and hundreds of dozens of cascarones were broken in an evening, and many q poor family derived 8 handsome income from the manufacture and sale of cascarones. They sold at dollar q dozen Tn the early part of the evening. and in the wee sma' hours," when the commodity be- came scarce, an ounce cf ! solddust has been known to be given for q single dozen.
 Many interesting stories could be told of the cascarone balls of the past. but only one will be men toned as an instance of the popu- iarity of this peculiar feature of the balls. On one occasion, at d 5all given at the residence of Don Jose Abrego, Pete Serrano, then a muchacho, was ol Eand selling cascarones. 4 gentleman approch- ed and asked what he would take for his cascarones. One dollar a dozen,7 was the answer. How many have you?,' was the next in quiry. Forty dozen" All right, I'll take them" Taking the bas- ket, he started down the hall. but had not taken a dozen steps when he was surrounded by a number of young ladies, and in mom0nt all hands were diving into the basket, coming out with double hands full aud crushing them on his head. while he manfully strove to return a few of tine compliments he received. In five minutes not one of the forty dozen cascarones remained whole. The modus oper- IuIi of cascarone making is very simple, and about as follows: h. to an empty eggshell-whole, cx- cept for an opening in one end | just large enough to remove the original contents is placed about q teaspoonful of tine-chopped pa per Of various bright colors and gold tiusel; then the opening Is neatly 0losed by pasting q piece of colored paper over it, and then the casearona is all ready for use. In Mexico, in the good old times, cuando habia mucho orc, gold dust mixed with diamond dust, was often used to fill the eggshells at the swell faudangoes given by the old grandees. And it is done occasionally nowadays by some of the wealthy old Dons who wish to do the thing ap in style. Other ways of filling the shells was to Use finly perfamed powder, and sometimes rare and costly perfumes were us e1. Very often tue shells were beautifully decorated, and some times hand-Painted. h Monterey before the decline of tho custom. he shells were often colored in fancyful designs like Caster eggs, and at otEer times tastfully deco rated with different colors of pa per. Chopped paper and tinsel were usually put in the shells, bat on more than one occasion gold dollar pieces were used one in each shell. Spiced candy was of ten used, and sometimes powder and perfumery. Housewives re- ligiously save the shells of all the eggs they use and put them away until cascarone season comes around.
 In cascarone breaking 1t is not necessary that one should be ac- quainted; in fact, it i5 sort of ''mashing" proceeding all through. The act of breaking a cascarone on another's head is 10 be consid cred compliment by the recipi- ent, who is in honar bound to re turn it at the first opportunity The proper way to break them is to crush the shell in the hand over | fb., ,,o,.-,,,,,. I,.I ,lI,,,.;,,, ;,- ,,,,